Nine Astra Skies

"You finally appeared. Let's see where you can run to this time!" Dongmen Yingyang snorted coldly. He thought that Ye Chen was trapped by the flames and could not leave.

"Heh, let's have a rematch!" Ye Chen watched Dongmen Yingyang and shouted lowly. His Astral Body emerged and the gold-armored soldier was formed again. This time, there were some changes with the gold-armored soldier. Faint purple light shone on the shining gold armor and the purple fire on his long sword was stronger. The purple fire also blazed behind his eyes.

Currently, the gold-armored soldier's strength was only slightly inferior to peak Heavenly Venerable Rank.

Little Tanuki once again merged her Astral Body with the gold-armored soldier. The white fire burned and the purple fire grew stronger. The strength of the gold-armored soldier rose sharply again, reaching peak Heavenly Venerable Rank.

Roar!

The gold-armored soldier let out a deafening roar. He waved his longsword toward Dongmen Yingyang and swung down!

Although Dongmen Yingyang vaguely felt that there was something odd with the gold-armored soldier now compared to before, he would never have thought that Ye Chen's strength would increase again in such a short period. In his imagination, Ye Chen's injury would not even be healed after such a short time. How strong would he be?

Overlord's Heel of Ruin!

Dongmen Yingyang's right leg smashed down like a meteor. Sharp Metal-type Celestial Chi split the air and crackled with the friction.

This leg contained all the Celestial Chi of a peak Heavenly Venerable One. It was absolutely tyrannical!

The gold-armored soldier raised its head, making no move to avoid the attack, and swung his sword at Dongmen Yingyang. The sword was integrated with Heavenly King Rupturing the Sun and in an instant, the gold-armored soldier turned into a purple ball of light, just like a purple sun, exuding its radiance. The tip of the sword also contained infinite profoundness.

At that moment, Ye Chen's eyes suddenly reflected the pattern of the Nine Astra. The Heavenly Astra Seal in his left palm also seemed to come alive and mysterious runes hovered around Ye Chen's body. On his shoulder, Little Tanuki also emitted rich white light.

This sword was as if it could cut open space!

Ye Chen felt as if he were in an astral world, empty, boundless, and vast.

This sword contained endless insight into the Dao.

The gold-armored soldier roared as he flew like a purple meteor dragging a long tail and swung his sword.

Boom!

The sound of the air blast seemed to shatter everyone's eardrums.

The terrifying force was released from the tip of the sword, impacting Dongmen Yingyang's Overlord Splits the Mountains. Astral Body and Metal-type Celestial Chi collided like a missile explosion, sending gusts of violent wind to blow instantly.

A figure flew backward like a kite with its string cut. It flew tens of meters before falling into the bushes.

After the terrifying blast of air had settled, the gold-armored soldier remained proudly standing in the air. Clutching the longsword, he carried an aura of indescribable sacredness.

Standing behind the gold-armored soldier, Ye Chen and Little Tanuki were not affected by the impact of the wind. It was just like a gust of air blowing. Their clothes rustled but their breathing remained calm.

In the distance, Dongmen Yingyang was completely scorched black. The gold-armored soldier's purple fire had swept over him and devoured his Pure Yang Chi Construct, causing him to be heavily injured. He staggered to his feet while holding onto a large tree. He could not understand why the gold-armored soldier would suddenly grow so strong after Ye Chen had disappeared for a while, becoming peak Heavenly Venerable Rank from mid-Heavenly Venerable Rank. He should not have underestimated the gold-armored soldier!

The Celestial Chi in Dongmen Yingyang's body had been almost completely spent and the meridians in many parts of his body were broken and seriously injured.

A trace of hatred flashed in Dongmen Yingyang's eyes. He had killed countless people and defeated many masters, but he had unexpectedly fallen by the hands of a seventeen-year-old boy. He could not fight with that cursed thing, otherwise, he might end up dying here. Thus, he jumped up and tried to escape but the gold-armored soldier suddenly swooped down from the sky with alarming speed. The purple flames burning on his longsword shone brightly and Dongmen Yingyang's eyes clouded in fear.

Then, with a loud "boom", Dongmen Yingyang was engulfed by the purple fire.

After Ye Chen had urged the gold-armored soldier to deal with the final blow, he finally could not withstand the intense concentration needed in the battle. His head felt dizzy as he fell to the ground with heavy breaths. That was the first battle where he had completely exhausted his energy. If Dongmen Yingyang remained alive, perhaps it would be Ye Chen who would lose.

Victory!

Ye Chen revealed a tired smile as he wondered what had happened to Little Wingsy. He had no more energy to help Little Wingsy and could only sit on the ground.

Ye Chen's consciousness was somewhat hazy and his body was extremely tired. It was a sign of overusing his Astral Body.

Ye Chen had used Celestial Chi to recover his physical strength. Little Tanuki had recovered quicker than Ye Chen and entered the forest with several leaps.

After around half an hour, Little Wingsy appeared above Ye Chen. He had transformed into the form of a boy and landed beside Ye Chen.

Ye Chen opened his eyes. His physical strength had recovered slightly. Although he had not recovered to the strength at his peak, there would be no problem in continuing his journey.

"Little Wingsy, what happened to that guy?"

"He wouldn't stop hitting me and also took a lot of medicinal pills, but he suddenly fell asleep while hitting me, so I came back." Little Wingsy looked a little confused. He did not understand why the man would sleep when fighting. He laughed as if thinking of something. "But I took all his stuff!" Little Wingsy took out a Heaven-Earth Bag and said proudly.

'That Nanman Kingdom master mustn't be allowed to escape!' Ye Chen's Astral Body swept a distance a few miles away. The Heavenly Venerable Rank combatant from the Nanman Kingdom quietly lay there, not breathing. He must have completely spent his body after eating too many medicinal pills to increase his strength.

Ye Chen recalled his Astral Body and looked at the naive and kind Little Wingsy, and remained silent.

Seeing Little Wingsy curiously looking into the Heaven-Earth Pouch, Ye Chen could not help but laugh. This little brat was becoming a money-grubber like Little Tanuki!

Just then, a white figure flashed by and Little Tanuki came back. There were seven to eight Heaven-Earth Pouches in its mouth and its eyes were curved into a smile that had an indescribable coquettishness.

Ye Chen rubbed his head. He was speechless toward these two money-grubbers.

"We have to go quickly. A large battle had just occurred here. It might attract other combatants," Ye Chen said. Little Tanuki leaped and landed on Ye Chen's shoulder.

Little Wingsy followed Ye Chen from behind and the three of them disappeared into the dense forest.

The chaotic scene had finally quietened down.

After half an hour, several people dressed in gold armor appeared in the thick forest, led by a peak Tenth Level middle-aged man in his forties.

"Have you found out the identities of the people who died?" the middle-aged man asked in a heavy voice.

"Reporting to the General, these people are all masters from the Nanman Kingdom and a few are even spies. We have been watching them for a long time," one of them answered respectfully.

The middle-aged man was a gold-armored imperial guard and was also a General.

"What are the identities of these Nanman Kingdom masters?" the middle-aged man asked. His deep frown loosened. There were so many dead and all of them were from the Nanman Kingdom. He had thought that it was the Nanman Kingdom who were causing trouble.

"According to the information I've collected, the one charred black by fire is called Dongmen Yingyang, a peak Heavenly Venerable Rank combatant. As for the one with shattered bones, his name is Sikou Fengyan, a mid-Heavenly Venerable One. In addition, there are five other Earthly Venerable Rank combatants and eight peak Tenth Level combatants!" the man replied cautiously.

The middle-aged man was shocked upon hearing the subordinate's report. Two of the dead were Heavenly Venerable Rank combatants. He immediately felt that the matter was more serious than he had previously thought and asked fiercely, "Are you sure the information is accurate?"

"Yes, General. There's no doubt!" The man put on a bold face. If he were wrong, he would be beheaded.

The middle-aged man felt his heart stutter. These were two Heavenly Venerable Rank combatants, five Earthly Venerable Rank combatants, and eight peak Tenth Level combatants, but they had died here. Who exactly did this? Perhaps it was a group of people? Even if two sects united, they might not be able to defeat so many combatants this easily!

"Send a messenger hawk to His Majesty immediately!"

A few messenger hawks flew to the skies.

At this time, Ye Chen, Little Tanuki, and Little Wingsy were already miles away.

Emerald Cloud Mountain stretched on endlessly. After breaking away from the path, the road grew even more rugged. Gradually, the sky began to darken.

Before long, Ye Chen and his party had entered a valley. The wind passed through the valley and howled incessantly.

"Little Tanuki, Little Wingsy, I'm afraid we'll have to camp outside tonight." Ye Chen smiled wryly. It was really difficult to find a place to rest in the middle of nowhere.

The mountains surrounded them from all sides in a radius of five to six miles. How would they be able to get out anytime soon?

"Squeak squeak." Little Tanuki looked somewhat distressed.

Little Wingsy also hung his head. He wanted to sleep in a warm bed but where would he find one in this wilderness? He had forgotten that he used to be able to sleep in the icy cold before.

If their only option was to sleep in the wild, Little Tanuki and Little Wingsy could only accept their fate.

Ye Chen looked at the armguard space. Fortunately, some things had been prepared in it. He could pitch a simple tent to camp here for the night.

If they could find a flying mystical beast in the mountain forest tomorrow, it would be much more convenient to travel.

"Little Tanuki, Little Wingsy, let's find if there are any flying mystical beasts," Ye Chen said. His Astral Body emerged and began to search the valley forest.

"Brother Ye Chen, I can change back to my original form and take Brother Ye Chen and Sister Tanuki out of the valley." Little Wingsy did not mind Ye Chen and Little Tanuki sitting on his back.